97 Taurus Wagon Rear Wiper/Defroster Problem
renech1
12-02-2005, 09:18 PM
Hello!!
I've got a rear window wiper problem with my 97 Taurus Wagon.
I believe this wiper has a low speed and a constant setting.
when the switch button is pressed, the wiper arm moves very slowly and then dies. Additionally, the rear defroster is not working.
I have not been able to find a problem with a fuse. I have been to a junkyard and tried replacing the switch. This did not work. I also purchased a motor, plugged it in..did not install it...just plugged it in and the motor performs in the same manner that the existing one does. Although, when I performed the test, I had the window portion of the liftgate up...not sure if this matters. I believe it has power as the test lamp lights up. It seems strange that the rear defroster is not working and I believe both issues began at the same time although I'm not completely sure. Almost seems as if there is a short or broken wire somewhere. I have the Helm manual, but it is difficult to understand. I would appreciate any words of wisdom!!!
Sincerely,
Bubba!
I've got a rear window wiper problem with my 97 Taurus Wagon.
I believe this wiper has a low speed and a constant setting.
when the switch button is pressed, the wiper arm moves very slowly and then dies. Additionally, the rear defroster is not working.
I have not been able to find a problem with a fuse. I have been to a junkyard and tried replacing the switch. This did not work. I also purchased a motor, plugged it in..did not install it...just plugged it in and the motor performs in the same manner that the existing one does. Although, when I performed the test, I had the window portion of the liftgate up...not sure if this matters. I believe it has power as the test lamp lights up. It seems strange that the rear defroster is not working and I believe both issues began at the same time although I'm not completely sure. Almost seems as if there is a short or broken wire somewhere. I have the Helm manual, but it is difficult to understand. I would appreciate any words of wisdom!!!
Sincerely,
Bubba!
shorod
12-03-2005, 11:03 PM
The rear window defroster grid gets its power from a dedicated relay which is activated by the Generic Electronic Module (GEM) after the switch is pressed. There should be an indicator for the rear window defroster near the switch. Does the indicator stay lit after you press the button for the rear defroster? If it does, measure the voltage across the connections from the defroster grid. Determine which connection is the positive and connect the other end of your meter to a good ground on the vehicle. If you have something more than 0.5 Vdc less than battery voltage, I'd suspect you have a bad ground somewhere.
The connection to the rear wiper motor should have 3 wires, correct? One wire is ground, one is run (brown/white) and the third wire is park (white/orange). The washer pump and wiper get their power from a 15 amp fuse in the instrument panel fuse panel. Does the washer pump work, and does the wiper operation appear normal for the couple of wipes initiated by the washer? If the washer pump doesn't seem to pump much fluid, and you've verified that hose is not plugged and the reservoir is not empty, I'd suspect that you have a bad ground or corroded connection somewhere. If the washer pump seems to work perfectly fine but the wiper motor is still slow, I'd suspect you have either two bad motors or a bad connection in the "Run" circuit. See what you have for battery voltage between the ground wire and the brown/white wire. If you see something less than 0.5 Vdc below battery voltage while the key is in the "Run" position, I'd suspect a bad connection somewhere. If you move the black meter lead to a known good chassis ground and the voltage equals battery voltage, the problem is probably in the ground connection for the motor. If the voltage is still low, then suspect an issue in the run circuit.
It looks like, from the schematic, if you were to unplug the motor and apply ground and battery power to the ground and run terminals respectively, then apply battery power to the park terminals, the motor should run full speed. If not, you probably have a bad motor.
-Rod
The connection to the rear wiper motor should have 3 wires, correct? One wire is ground, one is run (brown/white) and the third wire is park (white/orange). The washer pump and wiper get their power from a 15 amp fuse in the instrument panel fuse panel. Does the washer pump work, and does the wiper operation appear normal for the couple of wipes initiated by the washer? If the washer pump doesn't seem to pump much fluid, and you've verified that hose is not plugged and the reservoir is not empty, I'd suspect that you have a bad ground or corroded connection somewhere. If the washer pump seems to work perfectly fine but the wiper motor is still slow, I'd suspect you have either two bad motors or a bad connection in the "Run" circuit. See what you have for battery voltage between the ground wire and the brown/white wire. If you see something less than 0.5 Vdc below battery voltage while the key is in the "Run" position, I'd suspect a bad connection somewhere. If you move the black meter lead to a known good chassis ground and the voltage equals battery voltage, the problem is probably in the ground connection for the motor. If the voltage is still low, then suspect an issue in the run circuit.
It looks like, from the schematic, if you were to unplug the motor and apply ground and battery power to the ground and run terminals respectively, then apply battery power to the park terminals, the motor should run full speed. If not, you probably have a bad motor.
-Rod
renech1
12-03-2005, 11:23 PM
Hello Rod,
thanks very much for the reply. I looked at the rear washer gate this afternoon. I had to believe it was a bad ground somewhere. There's a rubber sheath on each side of the liftgate that protects the wires going to wiper motor and defroster. I peeled back the sheath on the passenger side and started looking at the wires....lo and behold...two wires with the casing slit and exposed...poked a bit further..one of the wires was broken...a little bit further..the fat black wire was broken..think that one is for the defroster...jeezz glad I finally found it...my wife lifts the gate a thousand times....should have found this a year ago...
anyway...I'm thinking I might just purchase a new harness...to many broken wires..I can see the end in the car that has a clip...it'll probably be a pain to change...not sure how expensive the harness will be....I'll find out Monday..
thanks again for your response!
Bubba
The rear window defroster grid gets its power from a dedicated relay which is activated by the Generic Electronic Module (GEM) after the switch is pressed. There should be an indicator for the rear window defroster near the switch. Does the indicator stay lit after you press the button for the rear defroster? If it does, measure the voltage across the connections from the defroster grid. Determine which connection is the positive and connect the other end of your meter to a good ground on the vehicle. If you have something more than 0.5 Vdc less than battery voltage, I'd suspect you have a bad ground somewhere.
The connection to the rear wiper motor should have 3 wires, correct? One wire is ground, one is run (brown/white) and the third wire is park (white/orange). The washer pump and wiper get their power from a 15 amp fuse in the instrument panel fuse panel. Does the washer pump work, and does the wiper operation appear normal for the couple of wipes initiated by the washer? If the washer pump doesn't seem to pump much fluid, and you've verified that hose is not plugged and the reservoir is not empty, I'd suspect that you have a bad ground or corroded connection somewhere. If the washer pump seems to work perfectly fine but the wiper motor is still slow, I'd suspect you have either two bad motors or a bad connection in the "Run" circuit. See what you have for battery voltage between the ground wire and the brown/white wire. If you see something less than 0.5 Vdc below battery voltage while the key is in the "Run" position, I'd suspect a bad connection somewhere. If you move the black meter lead to a known good chassis ground and the voltage equals battery voltage, the problem is probably in the ground connection for the motor. If the voltage is still low, then suspect an issue in the run circuit.
It looks like, from the schematic, if you were to unplug the motor and apply ground and battery power to the ground and run terminals respectively, then apply battery power to the park terminals, the motor should run full speed. If not, you probably have a bad motor.
-Rod
thanks very much for the reply. I looked at the rear washer gate this afternoon. I had to believe it was a bad ground somewhere. There's a rubber sheath on each side of the liftgate that protects the wires going to wiper motor and defroster. I peeled back the sheath on the passenger side and started looking at the wires....lo and behold...two wires with the casing slit and exposed...poked a bit further..one of the wires was broken...a little bit further..the fat black wire was broken..think that one is for the defroster...jeezz glad I finally found it...my wife lifts the gate a thousand times....should have found this a year ago...
anyway...I'm thinking I might just purchase a new harness...to many broken wires..I can see the end in the car that has a clip...it'll probably be a pain to change...not sure how expensive the harness will be....I'll find out Monday..
thanks again for your response!
Bubba
The rear window defroster grid gets its power from a dedicated relay which is activated by the Generic Electronic Module (GEM) after the switch is pressed. There should be an indicator for the rear window defroster near the switch. Does the indicator stay lit after you press the button for the rear defroster? If it does, measure the voltage across the connections from the defroster grid. Determine which connection is the positive and connect the other end of your meter to a good ground on the vehicle. If you have something more than 0.5 Vdc less than battery voltage, I'd suspect you have a bad ground somewhere.
The connection to the rear wiper motor should have 3 wires, correct? One wire is ground, one is run (brown/white) and the third wire is park (white/orange). The washer pump and wiper get their power from a 15 amp fuse in the instrument panel fuse panel. Does the washer pump work, and does the wiper operation appear normal for the couple of wipes initiated by the washer? If the washer pump doesn't seem to pump much fluid, and you've verified that hose is not plugged and the reservoir is not empty, I'd suspect that you have a bad ground or corroded connection somewhere. If the washer pump seems to work perfectly fine but the wiper motor is still slow, I'd suspect you have either two bad motors or a bad connection in the "Run" circuit. See what you have for battery voltage between the ground wire and the brown/white wire. If you see something less than 0.5 Vdc below battery voltage while the key is in the "Run" position, I'd suspect a bad connection somewhere. If you move the black meter lead to a known good chassis ground and the voltage equals battery voltage, the problem is probably in the ground connection for the motor. If the voltage is still low, then suspect an issue in the run circuit.
It looks like, from the schematic, if you were to unplug the motor and apply ground and battery power to the ground and run terminals respectively, then apply battery power to the park terminals, the motor should run full speed. If not, you probably have a bad motor.
-Rod
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